Tun Abdullah bin Haji Ahmad Badawi stepped down as Prime Minister of Malaysia two weeks ago and people already seem to have forgotten him. I am quite disappointed that nobody seems to have anything nice to say about this man.
Nearing the end of his tenure, it seemed like almost everyone was after him. I heard a number of Malays complaining that he had weakened the position of the Malays. On the other hand, the Chinese and the Indians were unsatisfied with him as well.
I guess the problem was that when he was made the Prime Minister, Malaysians expected great - almost impossible things from him. They expected him to wipe out corruption from the country, increase transparency, improve human rights, freedom of the press, etc. etc.
The fact is that he did. The press in Malaysia has never been this freer. He also initiated several campaigns to reduce corruption including the "Saya Anti-Rasuah" campaign. Whether these were successful or not is debatable.
Almost anyone who had to deal with Government agencies will tell you that the level of service quality had improved tremendously as compared to the previous Mahathir era. Of course certain departments have a long way to go before they achieve Bersih, Cekap, Amanah dan Toleransi (Clean, Efficient, Trustworthy and Tolerant).
One of the main reasons I have a soft spot was because I once was in huge trouble and I wrote to him directly as a last resort when all my efforts to solve it were in vain. I was really amazed when he (or his secretary) actually directed the Government officials involved to solve my problem with a letter copied to me as well. All this happened within two weeks. I had actually sent letters to other officials as well but no reply till date.
So what went wrong?
People suddenly realised that they could voice out what they felt and I guess the blogosphere had a role in this. This is illustrated by the fact that a few prominent bloggers were elected to the Malaysian Parliament. It suddenly seemed like Malaysia was filled with corruption and scandals. While the fact is that these had been happening from before, only that these were just rumours that went around via word-of-mouth and rarely read and analysed by so many people - common citizens. So opening up the media might have done him a lot of harm and he couldn't put a lid on it after people had tasted the fruits of freedom of speech.
Another thing that really hurt Pak Lah was the strained relations with the former Prime Minister, Tun Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad. There are several reasons and I wouldn't want to go into it. Tun Mahathir has a lot of admirers in Malaysia and even outside (including myself) and you can imagine the impact of every word against his successor.
Most people also blame Pak Lah's son-in-law, Khairy Jamaluddin for pulling him down. I have not seen any proof that Khairy was ever involved in any wrong doing but I guess a lot of the older politicians were wary of his rapid rise in influence.
Last of all, I blame his PR people for failing him. They totally ignored the blogosphere as well. Pak Lah certainly had a image problem. I am sure everyone has received a forwarded email with a picture of him falling asleep at some event or the other. In the end, everyone got the impression of a PM that didn't care. I wonder why his people never did anything about this. I know of a couple of brilliant old professors who have the same problem and used to fall asleep at all the academic meetings. All the people around knew their problem but just ignored it because they were aware how brilliant they were. However, it's different in the case of a politician, more so the Prime Minister of the country. For them, image is everything.
I guess I could go on and on but I am sure there are a lot of others like me who are sad to see Pak Lah go.
15 April 2009
11 April 2009
Vist to the West Midland Safari Park
Writing about the 'Great places for a day out with the family in the Midlands', I sudddenly realised that I had not blogged about our visit to the West Midland Safari Park. The park is just an hours drive from our place but we had never visited it until my wife's cousin visited us last June.
It was an amazing experience. I mean have you ever had a giraffe come to your car.
Remember to grab a packet of the special diet animal food available at the ticket stalls. Several of the animals come right up to your window and you are allowed to feed them.
Water buffaloes cooling off
Cheetah
Lions lazying around
Some face painting
We really enjoyed the Sea Lion Encounter at the Seal Island Exhibit Pool as well. Forgot to take pics.
I great day with the family and the kids really loved it. Will definitely be going there again.
It was an amazing experience. I mean have you ever had a giraffe come to your car.
Remember to grab a packet of the special diet animal food available at the ticket stalls. Several of the animals come right up to your window and you are allowed to feed them.
Water buffaloes cooling off
Cheetah
Lions lazying around
Some face painting
We really enjoyed the Sea Lion Encounter at the Seal Island Exhibit Pool as well. Forgot to take pics.
I great day with the family and the kids really loved it. Will definitely be going there again.
06 April 2009
Spring is here when daffodils bloom
I haven't done a Green Thumb Sunday post for quite sometime because I haven't been doing any gardening at all.
Anyway, the first flowers to bloom were the narcissus. They look lovely.
Over here, the yellow daffodils flowering everywhere signal that spring has arrived.
My daughter's daffodils which she planted from bulbs also started flowering and I helped her transfer from the pot to the ground.
I WANDERED LONELY AS A CLOUD by William Wordsworth (1804)
I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
Continuous as the stars that shine
and twinkle on the Milky Way,
They stretched in never-ending line
along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
tossing their heads in sprightly dance.
The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
in such a jocund company:
I gazed - and gazed - but little thought
what wealth the show to me had brought:
For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.
Join
Do visit As the Garden Grows for more information.
Anyway, the first flowers to bloom were the narcissus. They look lovely.
Over here, the yellow daffodils flowering everywhere signal that spring has arrived.
My daughter's daffodils which she planted from bulbs also started flowering and I helped her transfer from the pot to the ground.
I WANDERED LONELY AS A CLOUD by William Wordsworth (1804)
I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
Continuous as the stars that shine
and twinkle on the Milky Way,
They stretched in never-ending line
along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
tossing their heads in sprightly dance.
The waves beside them danced; but they
Out-did the sparkling waves in glee:
A poet could not but be gay,
in such a jocund company:
I gazed - and gazed - but little thought
what wealth the show to me had brought:
For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.
Join
Do visit As the Garden Grows for more information.
03 April 2009
Timex wathces
While browsing through the watches in one of the shops in the city, I came across some Timex watches and it brought back some memories. I suddenly thought of the day in school during my teenage years when one of my friends came to school with this chunky watch and he showed us how it glowed through the dial as compared to ours which had small lights from our sides - it was a Timex watch. I was crazy about gadgets back then as well and that was my objects of desire. Funnily enough I never got to own one though.
Anyway, I was thinking that I should probably get a new watch and of course I thought of Timex watches. Looking for reviews, I found several Timex watch offers on various sites but the best were on Amazon. I found the customer reviews really useful and I like the fact that the site does not hide the negative reviews about the products.
I am not really looking for something "geeky" with a lot of buttons and loads of functions - just a simple looking watch. Going through the various designs and reviews, I kind of like the Timex Expedition Traditional Leather and the price is not that bad at all.
First Commentator
Rani
Anyway, I was thinking that I should probably get a new watch and of course I thought of Timex watches. Looking for reviews, I found several Timex watch offers on various sites but the best were on Amazon. I found the customer reviews really useful and I like the fact that the site does not hide the negative reviews about the products.
I am not really looking for something "geeky" with a lot of buttons and loads of functions - just a simple looking watch. Going through the various designs and reviews, I kind of like the Timex Expedition Traditional Leather and the price is not that bad at all.
First Commentator
Rani
02 April 2009
Forwards mails, friends and heaven
A friend forwarded me this nice story explaining why he forwards emails:
A man and his dog were walking along a road. The man was enjoying the scenery, when it suddenly occurred to him that he was dead.
He remembered dying, and that the dog walking beside him had been dead for years. He wondered where the road was leading them.
After a while, they came to a high, white stone wall along one side of the road. It looked like fine marble. At the top of a long hill, it was broken by a tall arch that glowed in the sunlight.
When he was standing before it he saw a magnificent gate in the arch that looked like mother-of-pearl, and the street that led to the gate looked like pure gold. He and the dog walked toward the gate, and as he got closer, he saw a man at a desk to one side.
When he was close enough, he called out, 'Excuse me, where are we?'
'This is Heaven, sir,' the man answered.
'Wow! Would you happen to have some water?' the man asked.
'Of course, sir. Come right in, and I'll have some ice water brought right up..' The man gestured, and the gate began to open.
'Can my friend,' gesturing toward his dog, 'come in, too?' the traveler asked..
'I'm sorry, sir, but we don't accept pets.'
The man thought a moment and then turned back toward the road and continued the way he had been going with his dog.
After another long walk, and at the top of another long hill, he came to a dirt road leading through a farm gate that looked as if it had never been closed. There was no fence. As he approached the gate, he saw a man inside, leaning against a tree and reading a book....
'Excuse me!' he called to the man. 'Do you have any water?'
'Yeah, sure, there's a pump over there, come on in.'
'How about my friend here?' the traveller gestured to the dog.
'There should be a bowl by the pump.'
They went through the gate, and sure enough, there was an old-fashioned hand pump with a bowl beside it. The traveller filled the water bowl and took a long drink himself, then he gave some to the dog. When they were full, he and the dog walked back toward the man who was standing by the tree.
'What do you call this place?' the traveller asked.
'This is Heaven,' he answered.
'Well, that's confusing,' the traveller said. 'The man down the road said that was Heaven, too.'
'Oh, you mean the place with the gold street and pearly gates? Nope. That's hell.'
'Doesn't it make you mad for them to use your name like that?'
'No, we're just happy that they screen out the folks who would leave their best friends behind.'
So. Now you see, sometimes, when we wonder why friends keep forwarding stuff to us without writing a word. Maybe this will explain it.
A man and his dog were walking along a road. The man was enjoying the scenery, when it suddenly occurred to him that he was dead.
He remembered dying, and that the dog walking beside him had been dead for years. He wondered where the road was leading them.
After a while, they came to a high, white stone wall along one side of the road. It looked like fine marble. At the top of a long hill, it was broken by a tall arch that glowed in the sunlight.
When he was standing before it he saw a magnificent gate in the arch that looked like mother-of-pearl, and the street that led to the gate looked like pure gold. He and the dog walked toward the gate, and as he got closer, he saw a man at a desk to one side.
When he was close enough, he called out, 'Excuse me, where are we?'
'This is Heaven, sir,' the man answered.
'Wow! Would you happen to have some water?' the man asked.
'Of course, sir. Come right in, and I'll have some ice water brought right up..' The man gestured, and the gate began to open.
'Can my friend,' gesturing toward his dog, 'come in, too?' the traveler asked..
'I'm sorry, sir, but we don't accept pets.'
The man thought a moment and then turned back toward the road and continued the way he had been going with his dog.
After another long walk, and at the top of another long hill, he came to a dirt road leading through a farm gate that looked as if it had never been closed. There was no fence. As he approached the gate, he saw a man inside, leaning against a tree and reading a book....
'Excuse me!' he called to the man. 'Do you have any water?'
'Yeah, sure, there's a pump over there, come on in.'
'How about my friend here?' the traveller gestured to the dog.
'There should be a bowl by the pump.'
They went through the gate, and sure enough, there was an old-fashioned hand pump with a bowl beside it. The traveller filled the water bowl and took a long drink himself, then he gave some to the dog. When they were full, he and the dog walked back toward the man who was standing by the tree.
'What do you call this place?' the traveller asked.
'This is Heaven,' he answered.
'Well, that's confusing,' the traveller said. 'The man down the road said that was Heaven, too.'
'Oh, you mean the place with the gold street and pearly gates? Nope. That's hell.'
'Doesn't it make you mad for them to use your name like that?'
'No, we're just happy that they screen out the folks who would leave their best friends behind.'
So. Now you see, sometimes, when we wonder why friends keep forwarding stuff to us without writing a word. Maybe this will explain it.
First Commentator
Laymen's Views
Laymen's Views
28 March 2009
Great places for a day out with the family in the Midlands
A lot of people seem to think that the midlands of the UK is a boring place. they couldn't have been more wrong. There are so many amazing places here in Coventry and nearby areas which is great for a day out with the family.
The first thing we noticed was this building that looked like a balloon. It actually is - the outer walls of the semi-transparent tower is clad with inflated ETFE layers.
Filled with interactive exhibits, the place is really educational and entertaining at the same time.
I guess the highlight of the show was the animated movie projected into the circular dome of the theatre which short of enveloped you and made you feel like you were travelling in space.
We really enjoyed the trip and I recommend the place to anyone with school going kids.
Close up
Lunar Jim
Some rockets
from below
Loading up the rocket
Weight on the moon
Booth to call mars
Soyuz spacecraft
A final shot of the semi-transparent building.
- Transport Museum - Totally free of charge. Learn how Coventry was once the centre of the British auto industry.
- Warwick Castle - Going back in time to the medieval ages
- Coombe Country park - Wide open spaces, ideal for a picnic.
- Twycross zoo - nearest zoo to us.
- West Midlands Safari Park - Feed the animals as they come to your car.
- Alton Towers - the rides said to be better than Disney Land Paris.
- Cadbury World - Chocolate, chocolate and more chocolate
- National Space Centre
The first thing we noticed was this building that looked like a balloon. It actually is - the outer walls of the semi-transparent tower is clad with inflated ETFE layers.
Filled with interactive exhibits, the place is really educational and entertaining at the same time.
I guess the highlight of the show was the animated movie projected into the circular dome of the theatre which short of enveloped you and made you feel like you were travelling in space.
We really enjoyed the trip and I recommend the place to anyone with school going kids.
Close up
Lunar Jim
Some rockets
from below
Loading up the rocket
Weight on the moon
Booth to call mars
Soyuz spacecraft
A final shot of the semi-transparent building.
25 March 2009
How to increase traffic to your blogs
As part of my doctoral research, I have looked at the reasons why some blogs are able to get thousand if not hundreds of visitors to their blog everyday.
Some websites charge to tell you this secret but here I am telling you for FREE.
CREDIBILITY.
There is a huge debate among various scholars and various conceptualisations about credibility but most define it as as "believability".
Some authors have come out with the terms ‘webelievability’ to refer to “the degree to which people judge online information as credible”. Of course we cannot discount the credbility of the source - the blogger when it comes to blogs.
Looking at the credibility of the source, Credibility has been shown to be composed of
However, the next question is how do bloggers gain this credibility. This is where it gets interesting. Stanford Persuasive Tech Lab has published a list of ten guidelines to boost your web site's credibility.
Some are not even experts at all but somehow were able to get this perceived credibility and eventually became an "expert". I know of a couple of guys who ultimately went on to become popular speakers even though they didn't have either the professional or educational qualifications but just on the basis of their popularity of their blogs. Some of them have regular columns in magazines and even lecture at Universities with professors sitting in the audience. That's amazing isn't it.
It is interesting to note that many popular bloggers including John Chow don't really follow some of the points listed (for example, many of them carry ads including pop-ups) but they still continue to receive thousands of visitors. I guess that's where branding comes in. It also provides an interesting insight into the human behaviour. Once you get famous, the traffic has a snowball effect. Everyone wants a piece of you.
How you get that break is really important and sometimes it is by pure chance but often due to talent. I saw this with popular Malaysian blogger Kenny Sia when he exploded on the Malaysian blogging scene with his original brand of humour (his big coconuts) and of course his (in)famous Xiaxue pose. Now's he's Internationally known and his blog averages about 14k visits daily.
The lucky break may occur due to a mention in the press, magazine or a mention by another celebrity blogger. For example, a small mention by the ProBlogger can do wonders for your blog traffic.
But as they say, not everyone is lucky and sometimes you have to slog it out for several years before you get famous just by your sheer effort.
Some websites charge to tell you this secret but here I am telling you for FREE.
CREDIBILITY.
There is a huge debate among various scholars and various conceptualisations about credibility but most define it as as "believability".
Some authors have come out with the terms ‘webelievability’ to refer to “the degree to which people judge online information as credible”. Of course we cannot discount the credbility of the source - the blogger when it comes to blogs.
Looking at the credibility of the source, Credibility has been shown to be composed of
- trustworthiness and
- expertise.
However, the next question is how do bloggers gain this credibility. This is where it gets interesting. Stanford Persuasive Tech Lab has published a list of ten guidelines to boost your web site's credibility.
Some are not even experts at all but somehow were able to get this perceived credibility and eventually became an "expert". I know of a couple of guys who ultimately went on to become popular speakers even though they didn't have either the professional or educational qualifications but just on the basis of their popularity of their blogs. Some of them have regular columns in magazines and even lecture at Universities with professors sitting in the audience. That's amazing isn't it.
It is interesting to note that many popular bloggers including John Chow don't really follow some of the points listed (for example, many of them carry ads including pop-ups) but they still continue to receive thousands of visitors. I guess that's where branding comes in. It also provides an interesting insight into the human behaviour. Once you get famous, the traffic has a snowball effect. Everyone wants a piece of you.
How you get that break is really important and sometimes it is by pure chance but often due to talent. I saw this with popular Malaysian blogger Kenny Sia when he exploded on the Malaysian blogging scene with his original brand of humour (his big coconuts) and of course his (in)famous Xiaxue pose. Now's he's Internationally known and his blog averages about 14k visits daily.
The lucky break may occur due to a mention in the press, magazine or a mention by another celebrity blogger. For example, a small mention by the ProBlogger can do wonders for your blog traffic.
But as they say, not everyone is lucky and sometimes you have to slog it out for several years before you get famous just by your sheer effort.
First Commentator
Lisalicious
Lisalicious
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